Sheila Terry (Fine Gael)

I ask the Minister of State to ensure these steps are taken because to date they have been absent. Meetings with the appropriate committees must be scheduled at an early stage. I request that the Minister of State arrange for reviews to be held to determine what, if any, progress has been made in implementing the sectoral plans. If this debate achieves nothing else, it would be an achievement to secure a commitment from the Minister of State in this regard.

The Government, the social partners and people with disabilities have high expectations of the sectoral plans. While I welcome the work done to date, action is now required to ensure progress is made. As part of the national disability strategy, it is intended that the sectoral plans will act as a detailed road map for the development of supports and services for people with disabilities in the coming years. It is essential the plans are viewed as strategic enablers to ensure each of the six relevant Departments addresses the needs of its clients with disabilities through direct policies and a review of its structures and activities.

The delivery of commitments under the six sectoral plans needs to be progressed, monitored and evaluated in a co-ordinated manner. A number of mechanisms to secure delivery on commitments have been also identified through the sectoral plans. While some of the Departments with responsibility for the plans recognise the need to embed in their business plans and strategy statements the actions outlined in the plans, this is not identified across all the plans. The Disability Federation of Ireland, DFI, commends the Department of Social and Family Affairs on its sectoral plan and proposes that other Departments mirror its approach in their plans.

The purpose of the national disability strategy, of which the sectoral plans form a part, is to ensure greater inclusion and participation of people with disabilities. To achieve this, however, the strategy will need to target the exclusion of people with disabilities in two specific ways. It must address the significant exclusion experienced by people with disabilities. The sectoral plans are a key mechanism in this regard and it is expected they will detail how Departments will address the specific services and developments needed to secure the participation of people with disabilities. However, it is also expected the national disability strategy will ensure people with disabilities will be able, where appropriate, to access mainstream services and supports. This places responsibility on Departments to include the needs of their disabled customers in the strategic planning process and the development of services. Linking sectoral plans to departmental statements of strategy will mean Departments will develop a holistic response to the needs of people with disabilities through the development of mainstream and disability specific policies and practices.

I welcome the decision to amend the Cabinet handbook to ensure interdepartmental co-operation take places and services are delivered at the highest level. This commitment was given to the disability legislation consultative group in May 2005 and repeated in 2006. When will the handbook be amended?

Who is in charge of monitoring the implementation of sectoral plans and to whom are the six Departments answerable if they fail to deliver on their respective plans? Which Cabinet Minister has ultimate political responsibility for the co-ordination of the national disability strategy?

On the health sectoral plan, the draft national standards proposed by the National Disability Authority have been in gestation for a number of years. In March this year, the report of the Comptroller and Auditor General pointed to the need for clear standards of care for people with disabilities. The sectoral plan for the Department of Health and Children promises that national standards will be in place in April 2007 under the health information and quality authority, HIQA. Is the Minister of State certain this timeframe will be adhered to given that the Bill to establish the HIQA and the social services inspectorate on a statutory footing will not even be published, not to speak of enacted, until some time in 2007? Is the Government satisfied with the current position given that no agreed national standards for services to people with disabilities are in place? What safeguards have been introduced to protect service users and providers?

A report by the Comptroller and Auditor General on the provision of services by non-profit organisations emphasised that clear accountability and financial monitoring systems need to be established. A key objective of the sectoral plans is to ensure a process of financial accountability is in place. Do the Department of Health and Children and the Health Service Executive intend to address the absence of any reference to a new method of financial accountability for service provision in the Department's plan? How does the Department intend to ensure that such a committee will be truly representative of people with disabilities and that the voices of service users are heard? Will it be modelled on the DLCG which was, by and large, representative of service users and providers?

I am asking questions about the various sectoral plans in the six Departments without knowing whether the Minister of State will have ultimate responsibility for the implementation of the plans. For this reason, it would be preferable to have an opportunity to question each of the relevant Ministers. I ask the Minister of State to arrange for each Minister to come before the House on an annual basis to respond to questions. Unfortunately, owing to time constraints, I am unable to ask questions on the sectoral plan of each of the six relevant Departments.